Cooking With Betty

Betty Anonymous sent us an email this weekend - and now I want to go buy some raspberries and whipping cream and stroopwafels!

Stroopwafels

Went to a different supermarket, yesterday, and what did I see? Stroopwafels! So today, Betty A. polished off very creamy raspberry ice cream, home-made, and stroopwafels!!! I would have shared with you, Bettys, honest, I would.

Raspberry Ice Cream

300 g / 10 ½ oz           frozen raspberries

200 g / 7 oz                 whipping cream (fluid oz = same difference)

100 g / 3 ½ oz             sugar (scant ½ cup)

Process with your food processor or hand blender.

For frozen yogurt substitute yogurt for whipping cream

I microwaved the stroopwafels for a few seconds.

Macaroni Cheese

Icicles and snow scream comfort food.

Betty Keira and I were talking about the frequency of certain foods in the Betty Neels canon. We both agreed that the single dish most often cooked by our heroines (not counting tea and toast) seems to be macaroni cheese.  Aramintas and Olivias are popping macaroni cheese into the oven every time they turn around in their dingy little semi-basement flatlets.

Here in the States it's called macaroni and cheese (or mac and cheese) - and as far as I was concerned, it came in a box and you cooked it on the stove top. My kids grew up on the stuff. 

My Cautionary Tale:

I haven't been able to stomach mac and cheese since June, 1983.  Dr. van der Stevejinck was in a training course for the Air National Guard.  He was stationed at Keesler Air Force Base for his training.  Our oldest son (who was around one year old) and I joined him there.  I was pregnant with our daughter...and we were nearly flat broke the first month. I had $30 to spend on groceries.  I had to make that money go as far as I could - and we were starting from scratch...we didn't have any staples like flour or sugar or salt or... Anyhoo, we pretty much lived on macaroni and cheese, peanut butter sandwiches and oatmeal. Since then, I've been 'off' macaroni and cheese.  Lesson? If you can help it at all, don't live on macaroni and cheese while you're pregnant.  You'll never want to see it again.

 I found a recipe on epicurious.com - this is my version of it:
Macaroni Cheese


My previous ventures in
macaroni cheese were all
of the Kraft-y sort.



7 tablespoons butter, divided

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

4 cups milk

1  1/2 teaspoons dry mustard

1/8 teaspoon cayenne

1 pound elbow macaroni, large

3 cups grated sharp Cheddar cheese (about 12 ounces (I used a three cheese blend))

1 1/3 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided

1 cup fresh bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350' and butter a 9 inch square glass baking dish.

In a heavy saucepan melt 6 tablespoons butter over moderately low heat. Add flour and cook roux, whisking, 3 minutes. Add milk in a stream, whisking, and bring to a boil, whisking. Add mustard, cayenne, and salt and pepper to taste and simmer sauce, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 2 minutes.
In a kettle of salted boiling water cook macaroni until just al dente, about 7 minutes, rinse and drain well.  While macaroni is cooking, stir 3 cups Cheddar cheese and 1 cup Parmesan cheese into the milk mixture. Combine drained macaroni and cheesy mixture, pour into buttered baking dish.
Combine bread crumbs and 1/3 cup Parmesan and sprinkle evenly over macaroni. Cut remaining 1 tablespoon butter into bits and scatter over topping.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden and bubbling.

About 6 servings.

Verdict: Dr. van der Stevejinck is a fan of all things cheesy, so it was a hit with him. He especially like the breadcrumb/Parmesan topping. I'm not such a fan (see above)...but found it okay. Nearly sixteen year-old (tomorrow is his birthday!) wasn't overly fond of the crunchy topping.  Will I be making it again? Hmmm. Not soon.  After all, I have enough leftovers to feed Dr. van der Stevejinck for a week.

And now for my favorite song that includes 'Kraft dinner' in the lyrics....click here.

Aubergine Parmigiana

We've come across aubergines in two books lately - one of which was Never too Late (the little six year old liked aubergines). No recipes or particular dishes were mentioned...so we're left to wonder how exactly they were served.  I have to admit that I only really knew three things about aubergines (besides the fact that it is also a shade of purple).

1. They are also known as eggplants (at least they are here in the western U.S).
2. They are the feature ingredient of Eggplant Parmigiana, which I don't think I'd ever had.
3. Michael Franks sang a song about a woman who cooks eggplants. I bought his album The Art of Tea before I married Dr. van der Stevejinck.

So, I decided to give them a whirl. My nearly 16 year old (he's counting the days) was helping me put away groceries when he spotted the purple (aubergine) beauties. 'What do they taste like?' asked he. 'What do you think they taste like?' says I. 'The produce section.' says he.

I found a recipe by Jamie Oliver online - it looked good, but I was unable to grill eggplant slices today, so I ended up using a different recipe in an old Betty Crocker cookbook and combining it (a little) with the Jamie Oliver recipe.

Here's my version:

Stuffed Eggplant Parmigiana
2 smallish eggplants
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
1/2 cup diced onion
2 cloves of minced garlic
1 can of diced tomatoes (15 oz.)
1 small can tomato paste
2 tablespoons minced parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/2 teaspoon crushed oregano
a couple of leaves of fresh basil, chopped
around 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
around 1/2 a cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Italian style breadcrumbs

• Heat oven to 350'.
• Brown sausage, onion and garlic in saucepan, drain thoroughly. While sausage mixture is browning, cut the two eggplants in half and scoop out most of the pulp (I left about 1/2 an inch), dice.
• Combine in saucepan: sausage mixture, tomatoes, tomato paste, parsley, oregano, salt. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
• Add diced eggplant and fresh basil, cover and simmer for another 15 minutes.
• Place eggplant 'shells' in a baking pan (I used a 9x13). Fill shells half full with sausage/tomato mixture, sprinkle with mozzarella. Heap remaining mixture on top and sprinkle with more mozzarella, Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs.
• Bake, uncovered for about 30 minutes. Makes 4 servings.

Verdict: Dr. van der Stevejinck loved it.  He had two servings for dinner and took a third serving for his lunch today. I liked it okay...but found the tomato sauce a little overpowering (Jamie Oliver suggests fresh in-season tomatoes...that sounds more to my liking). Fifteen year-old - wouldn't even try - way too much 'produce section' for him.

Pumpkin Pancakes

I admit to being lazy about regular pancakes (yes, to my shame, I use a mix), but when pancakes are called for by my youngest, it's never regular ones...it's Pumpkin Pancakes.  I'm more than happy to oblige (any chance to get vegetables into him)!  I keep the recipe taped to the inside of my cupboard door - it's been there for years. 

There's nothing to it...sift dry ingredients together, mix wet ingredients together, then mix wet and dry together.  If you don't have all the spices, a similar amount (1 1/2 teaspoons) of pumpkin pie spice can be substituted. If you find the batter too thick, add more milk.  I cook these on a slightly lower temperature than regular ones - they need time to cook all the way through. 

Pancakes with jam are mentioned in Never Say Goodbye.

Garlic Mushrooms

Betty Magdalen brought up the subject of garlic mushrooms.  Thank you.  In spite of the fact that I'm the only person in my house that likes mushrooms.  These are super easy to make and pretty dang cheap (which is right up my alley).


Garlic Mushrooms

Ingredients:
8 oz small button mushrooms
1 tablespoon butter
2 cloves garlic, crushed
salt & pepper

Wash and dry the mushrooms. Melt the butter in a small pan then add mushrooms and cook at a medium heat for a couple of minutes stirring constantly. Add the garlic, continue cooking & stirring for another minute or so. Sprinkle a dash each of salt and pepper.
Reduce heat to absolute minimum then cover with a tight fitting lid. Leave the garlic mushrooms to sweat for at least ten to fifteen minutes, stirring occasionally.

Verdict: Yummy and easy?  That's my kind of dish.  Unfortunately not one I'll be making often - I'll wait until more of my kids are home.  I asked Dr. van der Stevejinck how they were: "They looked good - and tasted good...for mushrooms." In the interest of full disclosure, you should be aware that a) Dr. van der Stevejinck is not very fond of mushrooms and b)he ate more than half of them.

You can find garlic mushrooms mentioned in A Little Moonlight, The Bachelor's Wedding and The Most Marvelous Summer.

Bread and Butter Pudding

What do A Girl Named Rose, The Chain of Destiny and Emma's Wedding all have in common? Okay, they have quite a bit in common - but the answer I'm looking for is...drum roll...bread and butter pudding. The book I read this week (A Star Looks Down) also fits in the bread and butter pudding category.

A couple of days ago I made 26 loaves of bread.  That's right, twenty-six. Twenty of  them were very small, six were medium small. The last three medium small loaves I baked got a little overcooked.  Not burnt. Not inedible.  Let's just say the crust is thicker and crustier than I generally care for.  I was working on my review for A Star Looks Down and had an epiphany.  Dry-ish bread?  Yes, the stars have aligned, and so I give you (based on but not quite identical to the recipe in my English Traditional Recipes cookbook)...

Bread and Butter Pudding

4 oz. (1/2 stick) soft butter
about 6 large slices of day-old white bread (I used homemade French bread)
a handful of craisins (I guess you could use raisins or sultanas)
3 tablespoons superfine sugar (if you don't have any, I'm pretty sure regular granulated would work okay)
2 large eggs
2 cups whole milk

1. Preheat oven to 325'.  Lightly butter a 5 cup ovenproof dish (I used individual size dishes...and I forgot to butter them.  Oops)
2. Butter slices of bread and then cut them into small triangles or cubes.
3. Place half the bread slices in the dish, butter side up, and sprinkle with about 1 tablespoon sugar and half the craisins.
4. Lay the remaining slices, butter side up and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar and the rest of the craisins.
5. Beat the eggs together to break them up, then stir in the milk and remaining tablespoon of sugar.
6. Pour over the bread slices in the dish(es). Push the tops of the bread down if needed so that everything gets wet and can absorb the liquid.
7. Let the mixture sit on the counter for about 30 minutes so that the bread can soak up as much as possible.
8. Bake for about 45 minutes (one dish) - or until the custard is set and the top is crisp and golden brown.

Verdict: Part of the reason I made this recipe in individual dishes was that I knew my youngest (and currently only) child would not even try it if I put craisins (or any kind of fruit) in it. He still wasn't sold on the texture.  I liked it.  Quite a bit, actually.  For some reason, it's been about 20 years since I made bread pudding - I don't think it will be that long before I make it again - the simple ingredients and ease of construction will ensure bread and butter pudding will make it back onto my 'comfort dessert' rota.

Rice Pudding

I didn't grow up eating rice pudding. I wonder if it's a regional thing? Or a generational thing? My mother never made it for us...as far as I know, neither one of my grandmothers made it. I suppose this will remain one of life's great mysteries.

In Roses Have Thorns, the servants get rice pudding for afters. I found a recipe for rice pudding on allrecipes.com.

Creamy Rice Pudding

3/4 cup uncooked white rice
2 cups milk, divided
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
2/3 cup golden raisins (...or not)
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1.In a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil. Add rice and stir. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
2.In another saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups cooked rice, 1 1/2 cups milk, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat until thick and creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup milk, beaten egg and raisins. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in butter and vanilla. Serve warm.

Verdict: I will admit right up front that I didn't put any raisins or sultanas in...that's a bridge I'm not willing to cross. The flavor was just fine...my problem is textural. It reminded me of a problem in factories. The problem is Foreign Object Debris (FOD)...it's like when a surgeon leaves a scalpel in a patient. The rice pudding is somewhat like that - a perfectly good pudding with lots of lumpy bits. Don't get me wrong, I can see this being a comfort food, which it is for Dr. van der Stevejinck - he's going to be thrilled.

Toad in the Hole II

A couple of days ago I made Toad in the Hole. It opened to mixed reviews. I could tell it had real potential, so I reworked the script...I mean recipe. The basic recipe this time around is the same...but I added some catchy musical numbers...er...stuff to the batter (I had complained that it was bland and a bit soggy). After discussing it with Betty Sherri, who has had actual experience with toad-in-the-hole, I came up with a few things to add in that I hoped would enhance it.

1 small baked potato, grated and seasoned slightly with salt and pepper
about 1/2 a cup of grated sharp cheddar
fresh thyme - just a little bit
fresh rosemary - just a little bit
1 clove crushed garlic

I don't usually have fresh thyme or rosemary, but since I did, I used it (I don't think my Thanksgiving turkey will miss the small amount I took).

Verdict: Much better flavor, but still a bit soggy in the middle. I would like to ask our Readers for any suggestions to counteract the sogginess. I tried cooking it a little longer this time - and it was darker and crispier on the outside...just not in the middle.

Anyone?

Toad in the Hole

In Dearest Eulalia, Eulalia is thrilled to come home from a long day at the hospital canteen to find out that Jane is making Toad in the Hole for dinner. I used the recipe from my English Traditional Recipes cookbook, (by Annette Yates).

Toad in the Hole
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups milk

1 1/4 cups cold water
2 tablespoons oil
1 1/4 pound sausages

Heat oven to 425º.

Sift together flour and salt into a bowl. Make a well in the center and break the eggs into it. Mix the milk with 1 1/4 cups cold water, thin gradually stir it into the bowl with the eggs, incorporating the flour and beating well to make a smooth batter. Leave to stand. (Or you can just make it in the blender like I did - adding the wet ingredients first, then the dry).

Pour the oil into an oven proof pan and add the sausages. Put into the hot oven and cook for about 10 minutes until the oil is very hot and the sausages are beginning to brown.

Stir batter and quickly pour it around the sausages and return to the oven. Cook for about 45 minutes or until the batter is puffed up, set and golden brown.

Verdict: Mixed reviews. I can see this becoming a stand-by staple - but with few adjustments. This version was a tad soggy and bland in the middle, although it might just have needed a little longer cooking time. Next time, and there will be a next time, I'm going to add some seasoning to the batter - maybe a little garlic and rosemary (under the theory that you can never have enough garlic).

Caramel Wafers

No, no actual recipe this week (I'm going to Hawaii TOMORROW!!! and I don't feel like cooking). I was at Costco this week and I happened past these little beauties. Yes, the windmill caught my eye, and the Dutch kids, and the word 'Dutch' in the title. It doesn't hurt that I'm a sucker for caramel. The cookies are a bit spendy ($9.79 for a box of 54 cookies), but they were surprisingly good - and there were quite a few cookies in the box. The next time Ariminta Rose Cassandra Dawlish Darling is eating wafer cookies in Holland, I'm going to imagine that these are the ones.

Verdict: Fifteen year old son: 'Did you make these?' Me: 'Nope, bought them.' 15 year old: 'Please get the stuff to make them.' Dr. van der Stevejinck and nineteen year old son both found them edible. Edible enough to inhale them like they were a pair of industrial vacuums.

Parkin

It's fall, Amabel from Always and Forever is in Yorkshire...what does she eat? Parkin.

I've been waiting to try this one. Waiting until the right time of year. Evidently Parkin is traditionally eaten on Bonfire Night - November 5th...so this gives you just enough time to make it and let it age for a few days. I used the recipe found on About.com. I simplified the recipe here (just eliminated the metric stuff), but feel free to go to the original and compare. I made it Tuesday and now it's sitting in a Ziploc bag aging. I did make one goof - I was trying to multi-task (always a bad idea for me to do that when making an unfamiliar food) and left out the brown sugar. I'm not too fussed. If you look at the recipe you can see that it has 9 oz. of various syrups - so I'm pretty sure it will still be sweetish.

Yorkshire Parkin

Parkin is essentially the Northern English form of gingerbread. Different parkins are characterized by where they are made and Yorkshire Parkin, one the most famous, is made using oats. Yorkshire Parkin is eaten on Bonfire Night, November 5th, celebrating the famous failure of Guy Fawkes to blowup the Houses on Parliament in 1605. Guy Fawkes was a Yorkshireman.

This Parkin Recipe is easy to make and creates a moist sticky cake. However, you will need to store the cake for between 3 days to a week before eating. This allows the cake to soften and become moist and sticky. Delicious.

Ingredients:
• 4 oz soft butter
• 4 oz soft dark brown sugar
• 2oz black treacle/molasses
• 7oz golden syrup/ corn syrup
• 8 oz medium oatmeal**(I used regular rolled oats that I put through my mini chopper as the 'oatmeal' does not refer to rolled oats, but rather oat meal (think cornmeal))
• 4 oz all-purpose/plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 very large, or 2 medium eggs, beaten
• 1 tbsp milk
Preparation:
Heat the oven to 275°
• Grease an 8" x 8" square cake tin.
• In a large heavy-based saucepan over a gentle heat melt together the butter, sugar, treacle, golden syrup. Do not allow the mixture to get hot.
• In a large spacious baking bowl stir together all the dry ingredients. Gradually add the melted butter mixture stirring to coat all the dry ingredients.
• Add the beaten egg/s and mix thoroughly. Finally add the milk.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and cook for 1 ½ hours until firm and set.
• Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin. Once cool store the Parkin in an airtight tin for a minimum of 3 days up to a week before eating; this allows the flavors to develop and the mixture to soften and become moist and sticky. The Parkin will keep up to two weeks in an airtight container.

Verdict: It was tough having to wait for the real taste test. The best way to describe my attempt at parkin is that in flavor it's similar to gingerbread, but in texture it's closer to a bar cookie - such as coconut bars. One thing I wish I had done was to line the pan with some parchment - it would have been much easier to remove from the pan.

I think parkin is one of those childhood comfort foods. Much better if you grow up with it. Dr. van der Stevejinck and I liked it - with applesauce. Will I make it again? Maybe. It was fine. Fine.

Shortbread

In case anyone was wondering, Dr. van der Stevejinck came through with not just one, but TWO shortbread pans.

From the look of the final product, I think I need to work a little on my technique - but the taste is spot on. I do love a recipe that uses staples that I always have on hand. Here's the recipe that came with my pans:

Classic Shortbread
3/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
Preheat oven to 325'. Grease pan.

Cream butter until it's light. Cream in powdered sugar, then vanilla. Finally, work in flour. Knead dough on an unfloured board until smooth. Firmly press dough into pan. Prick surface with a for (I forgot to do this). Bake for 30 - 35 minutes or until lightly browned. Let cool in pan for about 10 minutes. Loosen the edges and invert on cutting board. Cut into serving pieces while warm.

Verdict: Yum. Even my picky eater likes these.

Apple Betty

I still have tons of apples and even though this dish isn't specifically mentioned in the Canon, with a name like Apple Betty, it may as well be there. I've been making this for years. Think of it as Dutch Apple Pie without the pie crust.


APPLE BETTY

4 cups sliced, pared tart apples
1/4 cup orange juice (or lemon juice if the apples are sweet)
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup sifted flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup butter

Mound apples in buttered 9" pie plate; sprinkle with orange juice. Combine sugar, flour, spices and dash salt. Cut butter in till mixture is crumbly; sprinkle over apples. Bake at 375' for 45 minutes, or until apples are tender and topping is crisp. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream. Yum.

Shepherd's Pie

Way back in January, I posted a recipe for Cottage Pie. I started my post with this quote:

"Cottage pie refers to an English meat pie made with beef mince and with a crust made from mashed potato. A variation on this dish using Lamb mince is known as Shepherd's pie." - Wikipedia

Several books include shepherd's pie in their story...A Girl Named Rose, Dearest Mary Jane, The Most Marvelous Summer, to name a few. Lamb is not really all that common an ingredient in Northwest cuisine...but as I was passing the meat section in the grocery store this week, I spied some packages of ground lamb. So here goes. I based my recipe on one in the cookbook I bought on Bettysday: English Traditional Recipes by Annette Yates.

Shepherd's Pie

preheat oven to 375'

Topping:

2 1/4 lbs. peeled and diced potatoes

4 Tbsp. milk

2 Tbsp. butter

Boil potatoes in salted water until soft (approx. 20 minutes). Drain, then mash with the milk and butter. Season to taste.

While the potatoes are boiling you can work on the filling.

1 lb. ground lamb

1 Tbsp. oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 medium carrots, finely chopped

2/3 cup lamb or beef stock (I used beef flavored Better Than Bouillon)

2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley (I keep forgetting to put it on my shopping list, so it was dried parsley for mine)

salt and pepper

grated cheese (optional)

Brown lamb, then drain and set aside (I seasoned the lamb with garlic salt, rosemary and thyme). Put oil in frying pan and add the onion and carrot. Cook over medium heat until soft (5-10 minutes). Stir in the cooked meat, stock and parsley.

Spread filling in an ovenproof dish(es), spoon on the mashed potatoes. Cook for about 30 minutes or until the potatoes are crisped and browned. Sprinkle grated cheese on (if you decided to use it).

Verdict: I'm not a huge fan of lamb...in my experience it's been hit or miss. This was fine - I liked being able to drain the fat off (which is part of my problem with lamb - I don't care for how fatty it often is). Dr. van der Stevejinck liked it, so did my nineteen year old son.

Dutch Apple Pie with Caramel Sauce

It's that time of year...the apples are falling off the tree in my backyard. Time to make apple pies!

Betty Neels must have liked apple pies pretty well herself, as they are mentioned time and again in her novels. The End of the Rainbow has apples pies mentioned twice! Uncertain Summer, Sister Peters in Amsterdam, The Doubtful Marriage, Emma's Wedding, Sun and Candlelight, The Quiet Professor (to name a few) all mention apple pie. The Course of True Love does them one better and has Dutch apple tart with lashings of whipped cream. I decided to make a Dutch apple pie - my recipe comes from Betty Sherri. Thanks, sis. I'm including my recipe for caramel sauce - as an added bonus.

DUTCH APPLE PIE

Filling:
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
dash of salt
6 cups thinly sliced apples

Topping:
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup firm butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
(Mix all until crumbly)

Mix filling minus apples, then mix them in thoroughly. Turn into pastry lined 9" pie plate. Top with crumb topping.
Bake at 425' for 50 min. Cover with foil last 10 min. if top browns too fast.

And if that's not enough for you, here's a dandy little recipe for a simple caramel sauce...easy to make and keeps well in the fridge.

Caramel Sauce

1 14 ounce bag of caramels

1/4 cup butter (1/2 a cube)

Melt in microwave for 3 minutes.

Add:

1 can sweetened condensed milk (such as Eagle Brand)

mix well.

(Serve with apple slices or drizzle over apple pie). Makes a great little gift - put some in a jar with a good lid and give it with a basket of apples.

I have to admit to cheating a little on this pie. I used a frozen pie crust...Marie Callender Deep Dish. Sure, it may not rank up there as a serious sin, but I feel a little guilty. Only a little, though. The apples really did come from my backyard - so I feel that kind of evens things out. Now, please excuse me while I dish up some apple pie for Dr. van der Stevejinck. I'll be serving it with lashings of vanilla ice cream.

Anchovy Toast

I bought a new cookbook last week (on Bettysday!). Frankly, I'm in need of a little culinary inspiration...

I probably picked the easiest recipe in it - and wow, was it easy. I expected mixed reviews from my family, and I got them, but I was surprised that I actually like anchovy toast. It's quite the staple in Betty Neels' stories (it's in The Moon for Lavinia, for example). I get it now. I can see it being comfort food, especially if you grew up on it. It's quick and simple to make - just keep some in the refrigerator for the next time your RDD needs a midnight snack after spending the evening doing a spot of emergency surgery or gets in late from a trip to Brussels.

Anchovy Toast

2 oz. can anchovy fillets in olive oil, well drained (I patted them with a paper towel after draining)

6 oz. soft butter (original recipe calls for unsalted...I used what I had, which was not)

1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley (again, fresh if you've got it...I didn't, so I used dry)

generous squeeze lemon juice

ground black pepper

4-6 slices of bread

Crush the anchovies to make a thick paste, add the butter, parsley and lemon juice. Mix well, season to taste with black pepper. (I skipped a step and just threw it all in my Braun mini food processor, 'cause that's how I roll). Cover and chill until required.

To serve, toast the bread, trim off crusts, spread anchovy butter, then cut into fingers and serve immediately.

Verdict: While not something I'd like every day, I could see making this occasionally...I might even buy a couple of tins of anchovies to have on hand in my pantry, especially for my 19 year old son. He loves anything salty, and this was definitely salty. My fifteen year old son wasn't nearly as fond of it...he tried one bite and said he'd stick to salmon. Dr. van der Stevejinck is generally not a fan of anchovies - he grudgingly said that this was 'as good as anchovies could be.'

Betty goes to McDonald's.

Betty Keira mentioned in her review of The Proposal this week, that the characters went to McDonald's! Wow. While this Betty is not overly fond of McDonald's, our family does tend to swing through for lunch during long road trips - so we go maybe 3 or 4 times a year. This spring I was coming back from Idaho with Betty Keira and my daughter-in-law (formerly known as "The Zombie Bride"). We stopped for breakfast at a McDonald's (I'm not usually a breakfast gal...) and Rebekah talked me into ordering a McGriddle. I've now had 3 or 4 total (lots of road trips this year...) and I'm hooked. Considering how high in calories these puppies are, it's a good thing I don't eat breakfast at McDonald's very often.

With my son and his wife visiting for the next few weeks, we decided to start off our first weekend with a McGriddle party. I did a little research for recipes - mostly trying to figure out how to get the syrup into the pancakes. I found a couple of different methods and decided to go with the simplest (because that's how I roll). I dropped bits of syrup into a small bowl of sugar and coated the drops with sugar. I couldn't make the drops small, but after they had been in the sugar a minute or two they were like soft gummy bears and I was able to pinch them into smaller pieces.

Making the actual McGriddle was pretty simple - especially since I actually have a griddle. I have the rings from when I made crumpets - cheap metal cookie cutters. Make a pancake batter (I used Krusteaze...but I'm sure you could use any mix you like...or even make it from scratch - if that's how you roll). Spray rings and griddles with Pam, then pour batter into ring - enough to cover the bottom. Drop pieces of syrup on top and cook for a couple of minutes before removing the ring...(then you can start more pancakes). Flip when the top of the pancake turns dull and cook on the other side until done. Meanwhile, make the filling. I used Jimmy Dean sausage on mine - turkey bacon and American cheese slices (yeah, Kraft) were available also.

Verdict: These turned out quite well and were completely devoured...Rebekah and I have agreed to give them another go - with an eye towards infusing more maple flavor into the pancakes - and making the pancakes thinner.

Lemon Sorbet

Another easy-Parcheesi summertime dish! Only 4 ingredients, and one of those is water! I got the recipe from the pamphlet that came with our Cuisinart Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker. Hopefully they don't sue me:


Fresh Lemon Sorbet


Ingredients
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped lemon zest

Instructions
Combine the sugar and water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer without stirring until the sugar dissolves, about 3 to 5 minutes. Cool completely. This is called a simple syrup, and may be made ahead in larger quantities to have on hand for making Fresh Lemon Sorbet. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
When cool, add the lemon juice and zest; stir to combine. Turn the machine on. Pour the lemon mixture into the freezer bowl, and mix until the mixture thickens, about 25 to 30 minutes. The sorbet will have a soft texture similar to a freshly scooped Italian ice. If a firmer consistency is desired, transfer the sorbet to an airtight container and place in freezer for about 2 hours.
Remove from freezer about 15 minutes before serving.

Verdict: If you have the ingredients for fresh-squeezed lemonade, you have the ingredients for this sorbet. It's both sweet AND tart. I really liked it - but beware, a little goes a long way, taste-wise. Dr. van der Stevejink found it a tad strong (which sooo won't keep him from having seconds)...my two teenage boys liked it - although they found it a bit strong too, although my 15 year old kept eating it and eating it...

I'd like to put a plug in for the Cuisinart appliance. Not only is it simple and easy to use, it's a lot less messy than traditional ice cream freezers. Ours came with two containers - you just keep them in the freezer until you're ready to use them. No muss, no fuss. I could see this being a problem if freezer space is limited, but if it's not, this is a nice little appliance to have on hand.

Lemon Sorbet can be found in Roses and Champagne and Britannia All at Sea.

Triple-Berry Trifle

It's time for an easy summerish dessert. In order to qualify for a summerish dessert at my house, the stove and oven MUST remain off. No extra heat added to our air-conditionless house.

Here's what I came up with. It's a variation on trifle that required no stove top/oven work at all. At least not for me. The microwave was employed, but in a fairly minimal capacity.

This trifle also qualifies as a "dessert by the numbers". Easy as 1-2-3. Let's get started.

1. Make one package vanilla pudding (I used the microwave directions). Allow to cool in refrigerator, then mix about half and half with whipped cream (or Cool Whip?).
2. Thaw out a cup or two of frozen strawberries, then puree in the blender with a spoonful or two of sugar, to taste.
3. Slice a pound cake into about 1/2 inch thick slices.
4. Spread marionberry jam between slices - like you're making sandwiches. Cut sandwiches into 1 inch cubes.
5. Let's start layering!
6. I covered the bottom of my container with pound cake sandwich cubes.
7. Sprinkle with blueberries.
8. Drizzle a little of the strawberry puree.
9. Spoon on some pudding/whipped cream.
10. Add some sliced strawberries.
11. Repeat.

There's nothing magical about the recipe. Change any step you'd like. Substitute different fruit. Make your own pound cake...instead of pudding, make custard...or use lemon curd. Go wild.

Verdict: 19 year-old Alex liked it in a general way - in a sort of "chunky chicken soup" way. Dr. van der Stevejinck declared it delicious. I am not a huge trifle fan - there's a great quote from The Pirates of Penzance that sums up my feeling: "Individually, I love you all with affection unspeakable; but, collectively, I look upon you with a disgust that amounts to absolute detestation." Yeah...I like all of the components, I just find the finished dish a bit too busy for my taste. I don't actually find it disgusting, it just doesn't work for me as a complete dish.

Blueberry Pie

When I was a kid, there used to be ads for Efferdent Denture Cleanser...and to prove the effectiveness, they stained some dentures with blueberry pie. Maybe it's the image of stained fake teeth that puts me off...but for whatever reason, I've never been a huge fan. don't get me wrong, I love blueberries and I love pie...I just don't think the two of them need to be seeing each other in 'that way'.

Blueberry Pie

1 quart(ish) thawed blueberries - you could use fresh, but I needed to finish up last year's blueberries before I start picking this year's crop.

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup flour

1 tablespoon cornstarch

dash of salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 beaten egg

double pie crust (I used the All Butter Crust with Almonds from simplyrecipes.com)

Sprinkle thawed berries with lemon juice and set aside.Mix dry ingredients together, then toss with berries. Pour into pastry crust, apply top crust. Crimp edges, cut slits for steam, brush top with beaten egg, bake at 400' for 40 to 50 minutes, until crust is brown and filling is bubbly.

Verdict: Way too sweet for me...I still am not in love with blueberry pie. Dr. van der Stevejinck and 19 year old Alex will have no trouble polishing it off...anything that is compatible with ice cream is compatible with them.

Blueberry Pie is mentioned in The Promise of Happiness